One of our favorite things to do is get up
to Bowman Lake before sunrise. We set up our lawn chairs
on the shore line, listen to the loons and watch the sky
get brighter. It's truly beautiful. Then of course, we
head down to the Polebridge Mercantile and enjoy fresh
baked goods, still warm from the oven. Check out some
early morning Bowman Lake pictures
here.
The
Trail:
The trail starts off flat and pretty heavily wooded but
before long you are hiking uphill, for just about the
entire trip to the lookout.
About 3/4 of the way to the lookout the woods thin out a
bit and you can start to see some of the surrounding
mountains and Bowman Lake. The color of Bowman Lake is
astounding, it almost looks surreal.
As you get out of the woods and into the
clearing it really opens up and you can see some of the
surrounding peaks. Square Peak, Rainbow Peak, and Mount
Carter are visible across Bowman Lake. When
you get to the lookout it appears as though you can see
forever and on a clear day I believe you can see
Missoula, but don't quote me on that. It's a
steep, tough hike, but the vista is worth it. Make sure
to keep yourself hydrated.
Keep in mind that most trails in Glacier
National Park are open to stock use. When we went up to
the Numa Ridge Lookout we passed a couple of horses on
the trail.
From GNP website:
Hikers are required to stand quietly on the lower
side of the trail and yield the right-of-way to stock.
Many hikers do not know and understand the need for this
procedure, so stock users are encouraged to courteously
coach them on proper meeting procedures.
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